THESE HIDDEN WINGS

[123] REGRETS

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"Regret?" he echoed, soft earnest eyes searching mine, "Is that how you really feel?"

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I NEEDED A breather.

A time for me, just to be alone and think. I traveled up the hill, my eyes squinting in the direct sunlight from the just risen sun, spotting two figures under the tree, their staffs beside them.

One of the figures was standing at its full height whilst the other was kneeling down onto the earth.

I stopped a few feet away, watching as Lwangi finished digging what looked like a small hole under the base of my tree.

In his twin's hands, Rangi was carrying a black closed jar, his lips pursed as his brother got to his feet standing beside him.

"Would you like to join us?" Lwangi's voice came out clear, startling me for only a second as I noticed none of them had bothered to turn around.

I nodded as if they could see me, walking into their clearing.

Standing on the opposite side of the hole that Rangi was just from digging, I looked up at them.

Lwangi gave me a small smile, handing me the black jar, "ashes from the Whiting tree," he revealed, as I took the jar examining it, the rough texture a perfect grip in my hands.

I looked down at the jar in my hands, feeling a short sense of despair at its unfortunate demise.

"It is only right that we reunite it with the last of its kind," Lwangi continued, pausing as he glanced at his brother with a low sigh, before looking back up at the last wilting tree on Kingsland,  "Let her rest for the last time."

My eyes studied their faces for a few seconds before my gaze dropped to the semi-heavy clay jar that they had given me.

Taking a short breath out, as I opened the lid, I  uncovered the half-filled jar with ashes. I stared down at the ashes and realized they were white ashes, my eyebrows furrowing momentarily.

"Whilting trees are one of the purest forms of magical conductors," Lwangi continued seemingly having had noticed my confusion, "they may burn black, but die pure," he finished, gesturing to the whole, " please-"

I couldn't help but think of what a beauty the tree had once been, only now having been reduced to ashes, but even in death, they seemed to remind the world of what a wonder they had been.

I nodded at his gesture, kneeling down on the grass, pouring out the pure white ashes into the whole that Rangi had just dug up, whispers of it getting picked up in the light breeze-

"You too are free to join us," Lwangi added, and my head whipped around spotting Lucas Bowne standing a few feet away, looking the same as he had been last time, depleted and yet still walking- his tired eyes, reaching up to mine with a short smile, a half twinkle in his eyes.

My heartbeat slowly within me as he approached our company knowing that we had shared what could only have been described as a 'moment' right before Harvest took that away from me.

I blamed myself for the feeling that was creeping through me, of embarrassment, guilt, and shyness all at once.

After all, he had made it clear whom he wanted and it was none other than my pretty roommate who in all honesty I feared I did not light a candle against.

Also, I felt like I had taken advantage of him for some reason.

Yes, I know it sounded ridiculous but just like Harvest had sourly stated last night, Lucas was at his most vulnerable point with the Crimson Blood moon dawning at the end of the week.